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Portolá, Gaspar de

(Encyclopedia)Portolá, Gaspar de gäspärˈ dā pôrtōläˈ [key], fl. 1734–84, Spanish explorer in the Far West. After serving in Italy and Portugal, he was sent (1767) to America as governor of the California...

Dobbs Ferry

(Encyclopedia)Dobbs Ferry, village (2020 pop. 11,541), Westchester co., SE N.Y., on the Hudson River, a suburb of New York City; inc. 1873. It is mostly residential b...

Cropsey, Jasper Francis

(Encyclopedia)Cropsey, Jasper Francis, 1823–1900, American artist, b. Staten Island, N.Y. Trained as an architect, Cropsey designed two churches in Staten Island and several stations on the Sixth Ave. elevated ra...

George Washington Bridge

(Encyclopedia)George Washington Bridge, vehicular suspension bridge across the Hudson River, between Manhattan borough of New York City and Fort Lee, N.J.; constructed 1927–31. It is one of the longest suspension...

skunk

(Encyclopedia)skunk, name for several related New World mammals of the weasel family, characterized by their conspicuous black and white markings and use of a strong, highly offensive odor for defense. The scent gl...

Ford, Henry

(Encyclopedia)Ford, Henry, 1863–1947, American industrialist, pioneer automobile manufacturer, b. Dearborn, Mich. Henry Ford's son, Edsel Bryant Ford, 1893–1943, b. Detroit, shared in the control of the vast ...

Lyric Opera of Chicago

(Encyclopedia)Lyric Opera of Chicago, opera company founded 1954 as the Lyric Theatre of Chicago; it was renamed prior to its 1956 season. The company performs at the ornate Lyric Opera House, formerly the Civic Op...

Lauder, Estée

(Encyclopedia)Lauder, Estée, 1908?–2004, American cosmetics company founder, b. Corona, Queens, N.Y., as Josephine Esther Mentzer. The daughter of immigrants, she married Joseph Lauter (later changed to Lauder) ...

Heinze, Frederick Augustus

(Encyclopedia)Heinze, Frederick Augustus hīnˈzē [key], 1869–1914, American copper magnate, b. Brooklyn, N.Y. He went in 1889 to Butte, Mont., as engineer for a mining company. In 1893 he organized the Montana ...

Royal Ballet

(Encyclopedia)Royal Ballet, the principal British ballet company, based at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, London. It is noted for lavish dramatic productions, a superbly disciplined corps de ballet, and bril...